Their latest, By a Thread, is a mean and meaty Southern rock monster, fueled by serious soul and pretty inventive grooves. This stuff should sound mighty fine rattling off the walls at The Ryman’s (116 Fifth Ave. N., 889-3060) during the band's Thursday, Jan. 28 stop in Nashville.

The jaunt that brings them here comes in support of the recently released By A Thread album, the band's first studio set in three years (and the holder of a particularly cool Mule collabo: "Broke Down On The Brazos," featuring ZZ Top's Billy Gibbons).

This run will be most Gov't Mule fans' first chance to hear the new Thread material, too.

"We (wanted) By A Thread to be a surprise, so we've made a point not to play any of (the songs) live until our fans can get the full impact of the new material," guitarist/singer Warren Haynes said in a statement.

Public on-sale for the Nashville show starts on Friday, Dec. 18 at 10 a.m. via the Ryman box office, Ryman.com or Ticketmaster, and ticket prices will run $22-$27.